Okaz/Saudi Gazette JEDDAH — Residents of Jeddah already suffering from traffic chaos because of the unending work on the roads, are now finding the roads unbearably crowded due to the summer vacation and Ramadan. Resident Mohammad Al-Zahrani said the streets are the most crowded in the morning and in the evening. He said: “With the summer vacation, family outings are causing unrelenting traffic daily.” He added going to the old area of Balad is now impossible, especially with the municipality's drilling and construction work. Another resident, Ali Al-Ghamdi, said traffic would become even worse once Ramadan begins. He said: “We need an urgent solution to the problem. The municipality's public transportation project needs a few years before it is fully functional.” He said Jeddah would grow in population because it is the main gateway to Makkah and the main tourist attraction in the Kingdom. Though Jeddah is full of bridges and underpasses designed to ease traffic, they are always congested. Last week Jeddah Mayor Hani Abu Ras announced that the city will have a public transport system in seven years. Jeddah completed 24 tunnel projects in the past four-and-a-half years and that a public transportation system is expected to be completed in seven years, he said. “We are currently setting the city's strategic development plan of 2033 and we are taking into consideration the general public's suggestions and complaints,” Abu Ras said. He also said the municipality has received over 2,300 complaints and suggestions from the general public.
